Current Edition >> Archive Section >> Special Features >> April 2008
No heading could be more apt than the above to describe Satty Mdhluli of Thabile Tours & Shuttle of Bloemfontein/Mangaung/ Heidedal. She has been an entrepreneur in the passenger transport business for the past 23 years and at present business is the best for her it has ever been.
It all started in 1985 when Satty started a taxi business for her father in Heidedal after his retirement. She was at the time the only lady taxi driver around. Her first vehicle was an old 1982 Toyota Hi Ace. In 1988 her father bought a 15-seater Datsun Nissan and the business later expanded to a fleet of five taxis.
During that period Satty did a lot of weekend trips, with customers including church groups, schools, football teams, holidaymakers, etc. Her long distance trips included Transkei, Kwazulu-Natal, Gauteng, Venda, Cape Town and others.
In 1990 Satty entered the Sabta Safe Taxi Driver competition and obtained third place amongst the male drivers.
Whilst her younger brother continued with the taxi business of her father, Satty established her own taxi business with the same old Toyota and eventually worked herself up to a fleet of five mini buses.
In 2004, she competed in the Lady Driver of the Year competition and won third place in Bloemfontein and second place in the Free State. One of the prizes was a voucher for an Advance Driving course, which she completed successfully in Pretoria at Zwartkops Raceway.
Through the government's recapitalization program Satty was able to purchase three new minibuses for her business. Recently one of these vehicles was used to transport tourists to Malawi – a huge challenge and great experience for the company. Amongst her current regular clients are seda, Momentum Health, Quintiles and other corporates.
Satty pays tribute to the valuable assistance she has received as a business woman from her family, as well as from business-supporting institutions like seda, NPI, FSTA and the Tourism Enterprise Program (TEP).
In conclusion, Satty points out that in the central region of South Africa there is no better and more cost-effective passenger transport service for smaller and medium-sized groups than Thabile Tours & Shuttle.
Time to internationalise Free State tourist events
Following from the assumption that every town or village or even locality in the Free State has the potential to be a tourist destination on its own or at least a tourist stop-over for a limited time, it is clear that the tourist events in the province, like the various festivals, are either existing or potentially major local draw cards for tourists nationally as well as internationally.
If this is seen together with the mission of the Free State Tourism Authority (FSTA) to get as many visitors as possible to the Free State and to keep them here for as long as possible and to get them to spend locally as much money as possible, then it is apparent that a fresh look be taken again at the marketing site of festivals and other similar tourist events in the province. As a matter of fact, it is considered time that the organisers of festivals, etc. should go international with the marketing of their events.
With the soccer bonanza in 2009 and 2010 in South Africa, the world's eye is on this country and therefore now is the time to raise the Free State flag maximally. One of the best ways to do it is for local festivals to go international. In this the FSTA stands ready to assist and facilitate.
Provided organisers of festivals and major events in the Free State bear their own expenses, what the FSTA is specifically willing and available to do, is to accommodate such stakeholders whenever the FSTA is participating in an international tourism exhibition, e.g. the World Tourism Market in London in November each year and the International Tourism Exchange in Berlin in March annually. The FSTA can provide space in the exhibiting stands and assist in making appointments with key international tourism operators and contacts. This is however subject to Free State organisers paying their own subsistence and travel.
The FSTA considers now really the appropriate time to market Free State festivals and similar major events internationally in a drive to significantly broaden the visitors' base to these events.
For more info in this regard, organisers can contact Phomolo Mokuele at the FSTA at (051) 411 4300 or email phomolom@fsta.co.za.
Tourism conference for Free State 5 - 6 May ’08
A Provincial Tourism Conference with a theme “Unlocking tourism potential and value chain opportunities in the province” is to be held 5 – 6 May 2008 in the Bloemfontein City Hall. The conference is being arranged by the Department of Tourism, Environmental and Economic Affairs.
A key objective of the conference is an analysis of the tourism sector as a catalyst for economic transformation of the province and to engage previously disadvantaged communities into the mainstream economy. In so doing the objective is to create a framework for development of the tourism value chain in the province and to discuss growth constraints in the industry.
From this a coordinated approach is to be developed and which would greatly assist the Free State Tourism Authority in the execution of its marketing mandate. The Provincial Tourism Conference is being planned and arranged by the Free State Department of Tourism, Environmental and Economic Affairs, assisted by the FSTA and other stakeholders.
The conference planned for up to 300 attendees, is to consist of a broad plenary session, four breakaway discussion groups and a gala dinner. The discussion groups will focus on the following four subjects respectively: Marketing and development / Transformation of tourism industry / 2010 tourism legacy programmes / Financial and non-financial support.
German tourists growing prospect
The FSTA has for a long time worked hard on the prospect of getting well-to-do German pensioners to visit the Free State during their winter months periods at home and rather spend time in the warm and sunny Free State weather.
This is one of the main features in the strategic liaison between the FSTA and the tourism authorities of the two German provinces Saxony and Saxony-Anhalt.
In March this year the CEO of FSTA, Phomolo Mokuele, represented the Free State in the delegation and exhibitions of SA Tourism at the International Tourism Exchange in Berlin, Germany, one of the foremost tourism exhibitions in the world. At this occasion, ties with Saxony and Saxony-Anhalt were strengthened, whilst valuable tourist information material about the Free State was disseminated to a strategic target market.
It is expected that the first groups of German pensioners to spend time in the Free State at pre-arranged destinations are to take place this coming local summer of 2008/09.
CEO's notepad
Lately I become all the more under the impression of the necessity of Free State festivals and major events, like the Cherry Festival, Bloem Show, Nampo Harvest Day and others, to be marketed internationally. The organisers of these events should specifically direct their marketing efforts to international visitors or prospective visitors.
Of course such organisers must be able to afford international marketing, but if they go wisely about it, it would be affordable. The results could be lucrative. Bringing more visitors from abroad to these festivals and events would definitely not only benefit themselves, but also their local economies substantially.
Other provinces are already practising this concept for a long time, e.g. the Western Cape tourism authorities marketing the Knysna Oyster Festival and many others, internationally.
The FSTA would gladly support local organisers of festivals, shows and events with, e.g. workshopping, training, providing exhibition space, arrange contracts, etc. However, the organisers must pay their own travel and subsistence and direct marketing costs.
In this regard, organisers are welcome to contact me at the detail given elsewhere on this page.
Phomolo Mokuele - CEO, Free State Tourism Authority
Monthly spotlight on tourism potential of various towns & villages in the province: Motheo
Background
It is evident from recent developments that the tourism industry in the Motheo District, covering the central part of the Free State, is burgeoning. To comprehend this phenomenon fully, it is necessary to look at the bigger picture first.
According to latest statistics by Stats SA, the tourism sector is currently contributing 8,2% to the national GDP, with an estimation that this will increase to 12% by 2010. This growth is translating also to the Free State and specifically to the Motheo District as the heartland of the province. According to the Free State Growth and Development Strategy, Motheo with 32,7% is the largest contributor of the five districts to the provincial GDP, while 26,9% of the Free State's population resides in the Motheo District.
With the decline in the mining and agricultural sectors in the Free State economy, tourism is consistently increasing its share in the provincial GDP, especially as regards a generator of economic growth and a creator of employment opportunities.
A salient feature coming to the fore in the Motheo tourism sector is that events and sports tourism is emerging as the outstanding strength of the region. Major events include the Bloem Show, the Macufe Festival, the Rose Festival, and others, while sports events include the rugby Super 14 and Currie Cup fixtures, Bloemfontein Celtic national soccer championship fixtures, the Free State Eagles playing in various national competitions, provincial and national athletics, swimming, bowls and other sports championships. All this adds up to establishing Bloemfontein as one of the sports capitals of South Africa.
Events such as these have a reverberating effect throughout the local economy with the calculation that every visitor to the region spends on average R1 400 in total on items such as accommodation, travel, food, personal needs, etc.
Bloemfontein and surroundings are also a growing conference and meetings destination vis-á-vis the rest of the country, especially because of its central location. Conferencing and banqueting facilities in the capital city as well as in the region are constantly increasing and improving, with the hotel and guesthouse sectors also keeping pace. Another major development is the completion of the Loch Logan Waterfront shopping and entertainment complex.
Within the Motheo Municipality District are three local municipalities, viz. Mangaung (covering Bloemfontein, Botshabelo and Thaba Nchu), Mantsopa (covering Ladybrand, Hobhouse, Excelsior, Tweespruit and Thaba Phatswa) and Naledi (covering Dewetsdorp, Wepener and Vanstadensrus).
Some current projects
Barolong Cultural Village
The Barolong Boo Seleka Cultural Village near Thaba Nchu is a Setswana-themed cultural establishment aimed at providing public information about the tradition, norms and cultures of the Barolong Tribe and Batswana as a whole. The Cultural Village is under construction to consist of a museum, arts and craft market, traditional restaurant and an amphitheatre.
The complex is expected to draw a high number of visitors to Moroka Village and Thaba Nchu, while community members stand to benefit by having a platform where their entrepreneurial activities receive adequate returns. The village is also to serve as a Cultural Centre for the community, where issues of community interest are handled, e.g HIV AIDS,local economic development, etc.
For more info, contact 082 867 4947.
Soetdoring Eco Park
This multi-faceted project, located within the Soetdoring Nature Reserve about 45 km outside Bloemfontein on the Bultfontein road, is aiming at giving a truly unique tourist experience, while at the same time conserving the integrity of the environment and biodiversity. The following additional components are in an advanced planning stage: A large aviary/bird-cage; a wetland area; a hot water spring; a 13-meter-high manmade waterfall; San rock art impressions; fossil impressions of crustaceans; and additional chalets.
For more info, contact 083 274 4039.
Disability Tourism Experience
The Association for Persons with Disabilities in the Free State (APD-FS) is implementer for this project. The aim is to establish a tourism route in the Free State which on the one hand exposes the general public and local as well as international tourists to the arts and crafts made by persons with disabilities, whilst on the other hand enabling persons with disabilities to travel widely in the Free State.
The main deliverables of the project are a guesthouse for disabled persons; road signage supporting disabled persons; 24 walls of remembrance in 24 towns of the Free State; 5 craft sales outlets in the province for artists and crafters with disabilities; and a Tourism Disability Information Centre to facilitate information about disabled people and facilities for them.
For more info, contact (051) 444 2883/4.
Bloem Show 125th anniversary
The largest agricultural, commercial and entertainment show in the Free State, the Bloem Show, is celebrating this year its 125th anniversary. The show has irrefutably through the years made a huge contribution in terms of economic beneficiation to the local economic and business community. Annually thousands of visitors and exhibitors from outside Bloemfontein and the Free State converge on the city to attend the show and with them sleeping over, eating and shopping they have poured millions of rands into the pockets of local business suppliers.
The forerunner of the Bloem Show, the Oranje-Vrystaat Landbougenootskap, held its first show on 25 May 1883 and after a lapse during the war years, the Sentrale Landbougenootskap as the successor held its first show in 1910. The show was then presented annually until the beginning of the Second World War and then resumed again in 1947, when it boomed into one of the largest of its kind in the country. The show developed various categories with competitions and prizes such as commercial, confectionery, hobbies, embroidery, handcrafts, toys, pets, flowers, etc., as well as being a showcase for national championships for horse, cattle and sheep breeds. In 1994 the administration of the show was changed from a manual system to computerized, while the name Bloem Show was adopted. In 1999 the world sheep shearing championships were presented at the show for the first time. Exhibition halls and exhibiting spaces were also hugely expanded, while the show in general became a family-focused event.
At this year's event from 24 April to 3 May a total of some 400 exhibitors are expected, with an estimated 110 000 visitors expected through the turnstiles.
Amongst the new features at the 2008 Bloem Show are the Vodacom Farmyard, a number of upgraded exhibition halls and ablution facilities, consolidated groupings of flea market exhibitors, improved access control, a large SANDF exhibition celebrating its 75th anniversary, expanded daily entertainment programs for young and old, exciting new features in the entertainment park and more.
On the whole, the Bloem Show is one of the best showcases of the best the Free State has to offer and as such a major item on the province's annual tourist events calendar.
For more info on the Bloem Show, call (051) 448 9894 or visit www.bloemskou.co.za.
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